The present invention relates to a recording/reproducing device configured such that a cartridge is slidably inserted and set in an insertion port formed in a side surface of a cabinet.
An example of a recording/reproducing device using a cartridge is a portable minidisk player.
For the portable minidisk player (hereafter referred to as a xe2x80x9cportable MDxe2x80x9d), a conventional device will be described below with reference to drawings.
First, a first example of the conventional device is shown in FIG. 14. That is, a cover cabinet 51 of the portable MD is supported on the side of a body cabinet 52 of the portable MD so as to be rotationally movable around a rotational-movement support point 53 from an open position shown by the solid line to a blocked position shown by the imaginary line, and the body cabinet 52 incorporates a disk rotation driving mechanism 54 and an optical pickup 55 (for both components, see FIG. 14(b)). Additionally, the cover cabinet 51 has a holder 56 mounted thereon. Accordingly, when the cover cabinet 51 is placed in the open position, an MD cartridge 57 is then inserted into the holder 56, and under these conditions, the cover cabinet 51 is blocked up, a disk incorporated in the cartridge 57 is connected to the disk rotation driving mechanism 54, on the side of a body cabinet 52 is rotationally driven, and is then accessed by the optical pickup 55.
In the portable MD of the first conventional example configured as described above, an operation of removing or inserting the cartridge 57 will be explained.
First, to remove the cartridge 57, and to open the cover cabinet 51 an open operation button 58 is slid to disengage a lock claw 59 from the cover cabinet 51 and opposite side surfaces 51a and 51b of the cover cabinet 51 are gripped and lifted. Then, the cover cabinet 51 rotationally moves to cause the cartridge 57 to jump to the solid-line position in FIG. 14(a), so that a user grips the cartridge by his or her fingers and pulls it out.
Further, to insert the cartridge 57, the open operation button 58 is slid with the cover cabinet 51 placed at the blocked position shown by a virtual line, thereby disengaging the lock claw 59 from the cover cabinet 51. The cover cabinet 51 is then gripped and lifted in such a way as to rotationally move around the rotational-movement support point 53. The cartridge 57 is subsequently inserted into the holder 56 and the cover cabinet 51 is then closed.
Next, a second example of the conventional device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-223386 specification. This is configured as shown in FIG. 15.
FIG. 15(a) is a sectional view showing a loaded state where a cartridge has been completely inserted. FIG. 15(b) is a view showing that a cartridge is being inserted or removed. In this example, an MD cartridge 63 is slidably inserted through an opening 62 formed in a side surface of a cabinet 61 and is removed when it is slidably discharged through the opening 62 by operating an eject operation dial (not illustrated).
That is, the cabinet 61 internally has a vertically moving cartridge holder 64, and a disk rotation driving mechanism 66, an optical pickup 67, or the like provided on a chassis 65. The cartridge holder 64 is configured so as to move upward and downward between a position in FIG. 15(b) where the cartridge 63 can be inserted through the opening 62 and a loaded state where the cartridge 63 can be loaded on the disk rotation driving mechanism 66 for recordinq/reproduction. Reference numeral 68 denotes a cover provided over the opening 62 and which is opened and closed in connection with the operation of the eject operation dial.
The operation of removing or loading the cartridge in this configuration will be described. First, to remove the cartridge 63 from the state in FIG. 15(a), the eject operation is performed to lift the cartridge holder 64 up to the position in FIG. 15(b) and the cartridge 63 is then discharged from the position shown in FIG. 15(b) based on an urging force (not shown) for discharging the cartridge.
The cartridge holder 64 must be lifted in order to release the cartridge 63 from the disk rotation driving mechanism 66, in which the cartridge 63 has been fitted, thereby preventing the disk rotation driving mechanism 66 from hindering sliding of the cartridge 63.
Further, to load the cartridge 63, the cover 68 is opened, the cartridge 63 is inserted, and the cartridge holder 64 is lowered at the position where the cartridge 63 has been completely inserted, as shown in FIG. 15(b). Then, the state in FIG. 15(a) is obtained to completely load the cartridge 63 in the device.
In the above conventional example, first, in the first example shown in FIG. 14, the opening and closing of the cover cabinet 51 and the removal of the cartridge 57 require the operations of gripping and opening the side surfaces 51a and 51b of the cover cabinet 51 and of inserting the user""s fingers to grip the cartridge. Thus, the device cannot be operated easily.
Additionally, the second example shown in FIG. 15 allows the device to be operated more easily than the first example. However, while the cabinet in the first example has an overall thickness (the body 51 and the cover 52) T (the dimension on the disk rotation driving mechanism 54 in the cabinet corresponds to the thickness of the MD cartridge 57 and holder 56), the cabinet in the second example has an overall thickness larger than that in the first example by an amount corresponding to the dimension S over which the cartridge holder 64 moves upward and downward. Thinner portable MDs are thus expected to be developed.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording/reproducing device which can be easily operated because it is configured such that a cartridge is slidably inserted and set in an insertion port formed in a side surface of a cabinet and which can be configured so as to be thinner when the cartridge is not being loaded or removed for insertion or takeout, that is, when the cartridge is out of the device or has been completely loaded.
The recording/reproducing device according to the present invention is characterized in that a second cabinet covering an opening in a first cabinet is connected the first cabinet having a recording/reproducing means and the opening formed at its top in such a manner that at least a part of the second cabinet sinks within the range of the thickness of the first cabinet when the cartridge is not being loaded or removed for insertion or takeout, that is, when the cartridge is out of the device or has been completely loaded, and in that when the cartridge is moved in or out, the second cabinet moves in the thickness direction of the first cabinet, while an insert port in the cartridge is opened.
According to the present invention, the second cabinet partly sinks into the first cabinet to make the device thinner when the cartridge is not being loaded or removed for insertion or takeout, that is, when the cartridge is out of the device or has been completely loaded.
The recording/reproducing device according to a first characteristic of the present invention includes: a first cabinet having a recording/reproducing means for a recording medium housed in a cartridge; a second cabinet connected to the first cabinet so as to movable from a first position where the second cabinet is located closer to the first cabinet in a thickness direction thereof to a second position where the second cabinet is separated from the first cabinet, the second cabinet preferably having a holder integrally connected thereto; urging means for normally urging the second cabinet toward the first position where the second cabinet is located closer to the first cabinet, an opening means for moving the second cabinet in a direction in which the second cabinet moves from the first position to the second position against an urging force from the urging means; and an insertion port which is opened when the opening means separates the second cabinet from the first cabinet. The insertion port is opened when the opening means moves the second cabinet to the second position, and preferably has an insertion port cover for blocking the insertion port. The insertion port cover forms a lip-shaped opening abutting portion having an inclined portion which enables the cartridge to be abutted against and inserted into the insertion port.
According to this device, only when the opening means opens the insertion port, the second cabinet is moved from the first portion where it is located closer to the first cabinet to the second position against the urging force from the urging means before the cartridge is loaded or removed (that is, inserted or taken out), thereby enabling the cartridge to be more easily loaded in or removed from the cabinets. Further, when the cartridge is not being loaded or removed for insertion or takeout, that is, when the cartridge is out of the device or has been completely loaded, the second cabinet is located closer to the first cabinet in the thickness direction thereof, thereby making the total thickness of the cabinets smaller. Furthermore, due to the insertion port cover forming the lip-shaped opening abutting portion cooperating with the opening means, the insertion port cover can be opened to allow the cartridge to be inserted thereinto, simply by abutting the cartridge directly against the insertion port cover and pushing it in the port.
Additionally, the device comprises detection means for detecting that the cartridge is being housed and locking means for locking the opening means using the detection means, thereby preventing another cartridge from being inserted when the above cartridge is already housed.
Further, the cabinet comprises an open operation button provided on its front side surface and which cooperates with the opening means so that the insertion port can be opened by operating the open operation button, thereby allowing the cartridge to be more easily taken out.
Furthermore, the device comprises detection means for detecting that the cartridge is being housed and locking means for locking the opening means using the detection means. A position where the open operation button cooperating with the locked opening means is stopped depends on whether or not the cartridge is housed so that whether or not the cartridge is present can be displayed on an insertion port surface depending on the stop position of the open operation button.
Additionally, the locked state of the opening means established by the locking means while the cartridge is housed can be cleared to open the insertion port only when the open operation button is operated for opening, thereby avoiding mistakenly inserting another cartridge.
Further, the device comprises second cartridge-discharging urging means in a second cabinet for urging the housed cartridge in a direction in which it is discharged so that when the opening means moves the second cabinet from the first position to the second position for separation, the second urging means discharges the housed cartridge, thereby enabling the device to be more easily operated when the cartridge is taken out.
According to a second characteristic of the present invention, there is provided a recording/reproducing device in which an opening and closing cover attached to an insertion port is opened so that a cartridge can be slidably inserted and set in a holder, and the device includes: a first cabinet having recording/reproducing means for a recording medium housed in the cartridge; a second cabinet attached to the first cabinet so as to be movable between a first position where the second cabinet is located opposite and close to the recording/reproducing means of the first cabinet and a second position where the second cabinet is separated from the recording/reproducing means; a holder moving integrally with the second cabinet to receive, at the second position, the cartridge inserted from an insertion port and transferring the cartridge to the first position, where the cartridge is subjected to recording/reproduction by means of the recording/reproducing means; first urging means for urging the second cabinet and the holder to the first position where the second cabinet and the holder are located closer to the recording/reproducing means of the first cabinet and where the cartridge can be subjected to recording/reproduction; second cartridge-discharging urging means for urging the cartridge in a direction in which the cartridge is discharged from the holder; an insertion port cover attached to the insertion port in the holder and urged in a direction in which the insertion port is blocked; and cover opening means operative, for moving the second cabinet to the second position to open the cover against an urging force of the first urging means acting in a direction toward the first position of the second cabinet when the insertion port cover is released. This device is characterized in that after the opening means has opened the insertion port cover and when the second cabinet is at the second position, the cartridge is inserted and in that after the cartridge has been completely inserted, the first urging means applies the urging force to move the second cabinet to thereby close the insertion port cover.